He is My Master

Sisters Izumi and Mitsuki and their pet alligator Pochi are desperate for somewhere to go after running away from home. They find a place to stay in the mansion of the disgustingly rich teenager Nakabayashi Yoshitaka in exchange for their service as maids. However, Yoshitaka is not just disgustingly rich – he’s also disgustingly perverted and a total asshole at that, keeping Izumi tied down with outrageous debts. Now she can’t leave until she’s gotten them paid off – but can she survive that long?

Gainax is dead, and He is My Master is its death certificate. The studio, once acclaimed for its bizarre psychological bent and tendency to go over budget, is nearly unrecognizable nowadays. This plotless, soulless maid fan service comedy is just another step in that direction, and all former fans can do is weep.

Most of the series is focused around tormenting Izumi and getting her in as little clothing as possible – coincidentally, also the goal of Yoshitaka. Everyone in the series pursues Izumi relentlessly, down to the pet alligator. Occasionally there is some degree of wit, but most of it just comes down to lolicon maid fan service. It doesn’t help matters that Izumi is a fairly stereotypical “bash his head in and ask questions later” character. However, for all that he’s an unsympathetic, obnoxious, spoiled pervert, Yoshitaka is far more interesting than the “lovable loser” type usually seen in this sort of series.

In the last few episodes, the director decided to introduce a dramatic plot. Needless to say, it fails for a couple reasons. For one thing, such a move never works. It didn’t work for Angel Links, it didn’t work forSukisho, and it certainly didn’t work for He is My Master. The plot is just overly condensed, and the series is already so thoroughly in its hole that there’s no rescuing it. The characters are already established as unlikable, so the move from (rather unfunny) comedy to drama is simply too jarring.

I will give Gainax one thing: they’ve improved dramatically in the animation department. The art and animation are brilliant and pleasing to the eye. However, the art strongly resembles that of Koge-Donbo, author of series such as Pita Ten and Di Gi Charat, so there is the slightly disturbing sense that any moment, Dejiko will come onscreen almost naked. Of course, that’s not too far off, considering the oldest protagonists are 14 years old.

So there you have it. He is My Master is an occasionally funny, disturbingly lolicon mess of an anime from the once-great Gainax. How the mighty have fallen…